Investors are reflecting back on the big market events of 2017. The Highlights: Brexit negotiations, the future of U.S. trade, the unraveling of Dodd-Frank, the tax overhaul, U.S. economic growth finally above 3%, persistently higher stock index records, crypto-currency mania, media company M&A, OPEC output cuts, the Paris accord pullout, GE's restructuring, Korean Peninsula tensions, the EU's war on tax avoidance and new Fed leadership. Traders will also remember the bruising year for the dollar and the go-slow approach toward monetary-stimulus withdrawal in major economies.

It's still the most valuable U.S. startup, but Mitsuyushi Son's SoftBank has succeeded in its bid to buy a large stake in UBER at a steep discount, the WSJ reports. Investors and employees of the ride-hailing service tendered shares equal to about 18% of the company in an offer that values Uber at $48B - a roughly 30% discount to its most recent valuation of about $68B. (WSJ)

U.S. oil prices have reached their highest since mid-2015 due to an unexpected fall in American output and commercial inventories. Crude futures are currently edging higher to just over $60 a barrel. Since the start of the year, WTI has climbed around 12%, although the price rise from mid-2017 is much stronger, at nearly 50%.